October 9 2016 Getting Where We Want To Be - Focused On God's People

GETTING WHERE WE WANT TO BE, FOCUSED ON GOD’S PURPOSE

Romans 12:1 - Because of God’s great mercy to us, offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His Service and pleasing to Him.  This is your true Worship that you should offer.

1 Peter 4:2 - From now on, live the rest of your lives controlled by God’s Will, not by human desires.

Romans 6:13 - Give yourselves completely to God, every part of you, you want to be tools in the hands of God to be used for His good purposes.

1.  Why Get Focused?

He shaped us for a specific reason.

Galatians 1:15 - For even before I was born, God had chosen me to be His and He called me, what kindness and grace.

God Knows what’s best for me.

Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord.  They are plans for good and not for evil to give you a future and a hope.

I Am grateful for my salvation.

2 Timothy 1:9 - Christ saved us and called us with a Holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace.

God Promises to reward our focus.

Proverbs 7:6 - In everything you do put God first and He will direct you and brown your efforts with success.

WHAT KEEPS US FROM GETTING FOCUSED

1.  Short term values.

Mark 4:19 - The attractions of this world and the delights of wealth, and the search for success and love of nice things came in and crowded out God.

1 John 2:17 - The world and all its passionate desires will one day disappear, but anyone who does the Will of God will live forever.

2.  Past failure.

Philippians 3:13-14 - Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me.

3. To self-motivate.

Proverbs 14:14 - The back slider is bored with himself, but the Godly man’s life is exciting.

Mark 8:35 - If you insist on saving your life you will lose it.  Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.

4.  Fear keeps us from focus.

Psalm 37:5 - Commit everything you do to the Lord, trust Him to help you do it and He will.

HOW DO WE GET FOCUSED

1.  Consider the cost.

Luke 14:27-28 - No one can be My disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow Me, but don’t begin until you count the cost.

2. Come just as you are.

3. He wants you to do it now.

Hosea 10:12 - Sow for yourselves righteousness, break up the follow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord.

4.  God wants 100%.

Romans 12:1-2 - Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His Service and pleasing to Him.  This is true Worship, then you will be able to know the Will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

C.S. LEWIS “THE ONLY THING CHRISTIANITY CANNOT BE IS MODERATELY IMPORTANT.”

March 13 2016 Daring To Go In Faith

DARING TO GO IN FAITH

Daring Faith: The Key To Miracles – Part 9

Two of the words that summarize Jesus’ message are: come & go

Matthew 11:28-30 (CEV) Jesus: “If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, COME TO ME and I will give you rest. Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. My yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light.” 

Luke 7:50 Jesus said, “Your faith has saved you. NOW GO!”

Memory Verse: James 2:17 “Any faith that doesn’t lead us to GO INTO ACTON with good deeds is worthless, dead and useless!”

DARING FAITH IS ABOUT A PARTY THAT WILL LAST FOREVER:

Luke 14:16-20"A very powerful and generous man prepared a great banquet and invited many prominent guests. When it was ready he sent his servant to GO AND TELL those invited to ‘COME, for everything is now ready!’ But they all began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I’ve just bought a field, and I must go see it. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I’ve just acquired five pair of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ When the servant reported this, the Owner of the Estate became angry and told his servant, ‘GO QUICKLY into the streets and alleys of our city and BRING IN the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame as my guests!’ The servant said, ‘Master, we’ve already done this, but there is STILL ROOM FOR MORE in your banquet!’ The Master said, ‘Then now GO OUT OF OUR CITY to the roads and country lane, GO EVERYWHERE and INVITE EVERYONE TO COME so that my house will be full! I promise you this: not one of those people who ignored my invitation will ever get to taste what I had prepared for them!’" 

I must GO. . .to obey GOd. . . to do GOod. . . to live the GOspel. . .to become GOdly. . . to reach my GOals . . . to share the GOod News!

WHERE ARE WE GOING?

1. WE ARE GOING TO  GO TO GOD FOR HELP

1 Chronicles 16:11 (TEV) “GO TO THE LORD for help, and worship him continually.” 

Psalm 34:10 (ICB) “Those who GO TO THE LORD for help will have every good thing.” 

Psalm 37:40 (TEV) “God helps them and rescues them and saves them from the wicked, because they

2. WE ARE GOING TO GO TOGETHER FOR SUPPORT

Acts 14:22“(Paul & Barnabas) strengthened the disciples and encouraged them to remain true to the faith, reminding them that we must GO THROUGH many hardships to enter the kingdom of God." 

Philippians 1:27 - 2:2 (NLT) “ . . . I want to hear that you are working together and that you are struggling side by side to get others to believe the good news . . . Don’t be intimidated by those who oppose you . . .You have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him. We are in this fight TOGETHER . . . (so keep on) loving one another, and working together with one

3. WE ARE GOING TO GO ON TO MATURITY

Hebrews 6:1 (NIV) “Let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and GO ON TO MATURITY . . .”

2 Peter 1:8 (LB) “The more you GO ON in this way, the more you will GROW STRONG spiritually and become fruitful and useful to our Lord Jesus.”

2 Peter 1:9 (LB) “Anyone who fails to GO AFTER these additions to faith is blind, or very shortsighted and has forgotten that God delivered us from the old life of sin so that now we can live a strong, good life

4. WE ARE GOING TO TO GO TELL THE GOOD NEWS 

Romans 10:13-15 (ICB) "Anyone who asks the Lord for help will be saved. But before people can trust in the Lord, they must believe in him. And before they can believe in him, they must hear about him. And to hear about him someone must GO AND TELL them! And before someone can go and tell them, he must be sent. It is written, ‘How beautiful is the person who comes to bring good news.’ " 

Acts 1:8 “When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you’ll be given my power, and you are to GO AND BE MY WITNESSES in Jerusalem, and in all of Judea and in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." 

Luke 9:60 Jesus said, "Let people who are dead bury the dead. Your job is to GO AND TELL OTHERS about God’s kingdom.”

MY DARING FAITH COVENANT

In gratitude for all that Christ has done for me, and out of a deep desire to grow in my faith, and in obedience to Christ’s command that I “store up treasure in Heaven,” I make a covenant today with my brothers and sisters of Great Plains Church to use the next 2 years growing, sowing, and going in daring faith. ...I commit to showing and sharing God’s love with those closest to me and serving God by serving others in our community. Also, because I want someone to be in Heaven because I cared, I am asking God to give me the privilege of bringing ONE person to Jesus in the next 2 years and see them be baptized and become a part of the fellowship of our church family. I know I cannot do this on my own power but I will trust God in daring faith to see it happen.

October 4 2015 The Prayer Of Surrender

THE PRAYER OF SURRENDER

Matthew 6:10 – Thy Kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

SOURCES OF STRESS:

• Uncontrollable circumstances.
• Uncooperative people.
• Unexplainable pain.

God’s Kingdom is Wherever Jesus is King.

Surrendering to Jesus means:

1. Letting go of control.

Psalm 46:10 –Be still and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.

The Serenity Prayer: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.  Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time accepting hardship as a pathway to peace taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to your will so that I may be reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with You forever in the next.  Amen. (Reinhold Niebuhr)

Romans 8:6 – The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.

2. Learning to be content.

Philippians 4:11-13 – I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have and with everything that happens.  I know how to live when I am poor, and I know how to live when I have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being happy at any time in everything that happens.  I can do all things through Christ because he gives me strength.

Psalm 37:7a – Surrender yourself to the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.

3. Laying down my plans.

1 John 3:16 – This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

Romans 6:13 – Give yourselves to God.  Surrender your whole being to Him to be used for righteous purposes.

Matthew 6:33 – God will give you all you need from day to day if you live for Him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern.

4. Leave the future to God.

Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths.

Psalm 37:18-19 – The Lord takes care of those who obey Him, and gives them eternal rewards that last forever.  They will survive through hard times and will have more than enough even in a time of famine.

Luke 14:33 – Jesus said, “You must give up everything you have to be My follower”.

Mark 10:29-30 – But let Me assure you that no one has ever given up anything for love of Me and to tell others the Good News, who won’t be given back, a hundred times over, and in the world to come he shall have eternal life.

March 17 2013 Learning To Love Christ Back

LEARNING TO LOVE CHRIST BACK

Rev. 4:116 - You (God) created everything and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created.
Romans 12:1 - Because of God’s great mercy to us, offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His Service and pleasing to Him. This is your true Worship that you should offer.
I Peter 4:2 - From now on, live the rest of your lives controlled by God’s Will, not by human desires.
Romans 6:13 - Give yourselves completely to God, every part of you, you want to be tools in the hands of God to be used for His good purposes.

1. Why Love Christ Back?

He shaped us for a specific reason.

Gal. 1:15 - For even before I was born, God had chosen me to be His and He called me, what kindness and grace.
God Knows what’s best for me.
Jer. 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil to give you a future and a hope.
I Am grateful for our salvation.
II Timothy 1:9 - Christ saved us and called us with a Holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace.

God Promises to reward our commitment.

Proverbs 7:6 - In everything you do put God first and He will direct you and brown your efforts with success.

WHAT KEEPS US FROM LOVING CHRIST BACK

1. Short term values.
Mark 4:19 - The attractions of this world and the delights of wealth, and the search for success and love of nice things came in and crowded out God.
I John 2:17 - The world and all its passionate desires will one day disappear, but anyone who does the Will of God will live forever.

2. Past failure.
Phil 3:13-14 - Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me.

3. We are self motivated.
Prov. 14:14 - The back slider is bored with himself, but the Godly man’s life is exciting.
Mark 8:35 - If you insist on saving your life you will lose it. Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.

4. Fear.
Psalm 37:5 - Commit everything you do to the Lord, trust Him to help you do it and He will.

HOW DO WE LOVE CHRIST BACK

1. Consider the cost.
Luke 14:27-28 - No one can be My disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow Me, but don’t begin until you count the cost.

2. Come just as you are.

3. Do it now.
Hosea 10:12 - Sow for yourselves righteousness, break up the follow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord.

4. Give all we have.
Romans 12:1-2 - Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His Service and pleasing to Him. This is true Worship, then you will be able to know the Will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

C.S. LEWIS “THE ONLY THING CHRISTIANITY CANNOT BE IS MODERATELY IMPORTANT.”

October 14 2012 The Choice Of Reactions

THE CHOICE OF REACTIONS

Matthew 5:5 - Happy are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

I.  Clearing Up The Confusion

• What meekness is not:  Weakness

• What meekness is:  Strength under control

II. When Do I Need To Manage My Reactions?

1. When someone serves you

Be understanding not demanding.

Philippians 2:4-5- Don’t just think about your own affairs, but be interested in others too, and in what they are doing.  Your attitude should be the same as Jesus Christ.

2. When someone disappoints you

Be gentle not judgmental.

Romans 14:1 - Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters.

Galatians 6:1-2 - If a person is trapped in some sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently.  But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.  Carry each other’s burdens.

3. When someone disagrees with you

Be tender withoutsurrender.

Proverbs 15:1 - A gentle answer quiets anger but a harsh word stirs it up.

James 3:16-17 - Wherever there is jealousy or selfish ambition, there will be disorder.  But wisdom from above is pure, peaceful gentle and friendly.

2 Timothy 2:24-25 - The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, those who oppose him, he must gently instruct, in hope that God will give them a change of heart.

4. When someone corrects you

Be teachable not unteachable.

James 1:19 - Let everyone be quick to listen, but slow to use his tongue, and slow to lose his temper.

Proverbs 13:18 - Whoever listens to correction is honored.

5. When someone hurts you

Be an actor not a reactor.

Romans 12:17. 21 - Do not repay evil for evil, overcome evil with good.

Proverbs 16:32 - He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his own spirit, than he who captures a city.

2 Timothy 1:7 - God does not make us timid, instead His spirit fills us with power, love and self control.

Luke 14:33 - So no one can become my disciple without giving up everything for me.